Howard Gilman Foundation

The foundation generally confers grants to arts and cultural organizations with budgets over $250,000, however, it has partnered with other groups to create re-grant programs for smaller amounts. The foundation has also funded some non-arts related organizations and left-of-center advocacy groups, including Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Doctors Without Borders, and the Youth Justice Network. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

History

The Howard Gilman Foundation was founded by Howard Gilman in 1981. Gilman was the third generation of his family to lead the Gilman Paper Company, which he eventually owned in its entirety following the death of his brother. The Gilman Paper Company was founded in Vermont by Howard Gilman’s grandfather Issac Gilman in the 1880s in a town that was later renamed Gilman. Eventually, the Gilman Paper Company became the largest privately owned paper and lumber company in the United States. Howard Gilman had no children and was unmarried; upon his death, he had over 1.1 billion in assets and over $500 million in debts. Nearly all his net assets were donated to the Howard Gilman Foundation. ^{5 4}

During his lifetime Gilman was a well-known patron of the arts with a particular passion for ballet and dance; he supported organizations including the American Ballet Theater, the Metropolitan Opera, the New York City Opera, and the Howard Gilman Opera House at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Regarding his other philanthropic efforts, The Florida Times-Union noted that “He gave millions to his favorite causes: the arts, wildlife conservation and medical research into HIV/AIDS and cardiology.” ^{5 4}

Gillman was also known for owning the White Oak Plantation in Jacksonville, Florida, a 7,400-acre plantation that included a dance studio that Gilman built for his friend, Latvian-American ballet dancer and actor Mikhail Baryshnikov; a 600-acre Conservation Center, which housed and bred threatened species; and a 70-building conference center. ⁵

Forbes noted that Gilman, while lacking success in turning his family’s business around, was known to “Play host at White Oak to U.S. presidents and celebrities and their families, often using the company’s plane to ferry them to White Oak. The guests were fed meals prepared by top-notch chefs. Bill Clinton played golf on Gilman’s private nine-hole course.” ⁴

Activity

The Howard Gilman Foundation continues to primarily fund performing arts organizations as it did during Gilman’s lifetime, with its assets having grown to over $500 million by 2022. The organization mostly funds arts organizations with budgets over $250,000 annually but has partnered with other groups to create re-grant programs for smaller amounts, including providing $300,000 to a program in 2023 operated by Flushing Town Hall in Queens, New York to support Queens-based arts and culture nonprofit organizations with $10,000 general operating grants. ⁶

The foundation is led by Laura Aden, who took over as the executive of the foundation in 2014 and led a “reboot” of the organization which had been dormant and without a staff for nearly 12 years. She previously worked for the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation in New Jersey and the New Jersey Theatre Alliance. ⁶

In 2025, the Howard Gilman Foundation partnered with the Trust Based Philanthropy Project through their “Meet the moment” initiative. This initiative seeks to bring its supporters together “in solidarity with nonprofits.” The group claims that the political climate could pose risks to nonprofits through reductions in funding, legal concerns, and lack of staff. ⁷

Grantmaking

The Howard Gilman Foundation provides funding to hundreds of organizations annually. The foundation mostly confers grants to performing arts organizations, but has also funded some non-arts related organizations and left-of-center advocacy groups including the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Doctors Without Borders, Women’s Refugee Commission, the Wikimedia Foundation, Transgender Gender Variant Intersex Justice Project, Save the Children Federation, Public Concern Foundation, Resist, Rising Ground, and the Youth Justice Network. ¹

The foundation funds Dorrance Dance, a tap dance company that has promoted far-left policies including the abolition of prisons and defunding the police. ⁸